Byron Jones – September 9, 2020
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Wednesday, September 9, 2020
CB Byron Jones
(Now that CB Xavien Howard has been back at practice, it looks like he’s fully in there. What’s it been like working with him on the field – it’s not just meeting rooms now – and realizing the potential of the talent that you guys have between the two of you?) – “It’s cool to see him out there. It’s an opportunity for me to see just how good he is. He’s really aggressive on the line of scrimmage, he knows how to attack the ball really well. I’m learning a lot from him, just watching him be out there. He’s a good mentor to Noah (Igbinoghene). We’re all doing everything we can to get him up to speed. He looks good out there – really good.”
(I went back and looked at the numbers. It looks like you faced Cam Newton twice in your career. I don’t think the Cowboys had a win against him, but you personally had success. What can you take from that and what’s the key to slowing down Cam Newton?) – “Cam is extremely talented. He’s a guy that’s going to make plays. Our job on defense is to read our keys, do what we’re taught, fundamentals. That’s what it’s really going to come down to, especially early in the season. Tackling, knowing the plays, understanding what the offense wants to do to the defense depending on the offensive set. It’s just a game of focus and attention to the details really.”
(I don’t know if this is news to you. It probably happened while you were on the practice field; but the Rams are giving Jalen Ramsey a $105 million contract, $71 million in guarantees. What’s your reaction?) – “It’s big money, man. That guy deserves it. He plays his ass off every game. It’s good to see people like that do well.”
(What do you think about the idea of playing Lift Every Voice and Sing as well as the national anthem before games this year? Will you consider kneeling before any of those anthems?) – “Our team has something coming. We’re still in discussions on exactly what we’re going to do. I think it will be shown very soon.”
(I want to circle back to the CB Jalen Ramsey contract. You no longer have the distinction of being the highest-paid corner in the league. I don’t know if that was important to you, but does that kind of alleviate any pressure that comes with that distinction for you, now that you’re second in total value?) – “No, not at all. That’s not something that’s important to me. I wanted to come here and play good football, regardless of where I’m at on the pay scale. That’s my main focus and that’s what I truly care about. I truly care about winning, I truly care about playing well myself and carrying my weight on the team. That’s what is important to me in life, to be honest. It’s playing good football with a good group of guys and winning some games.”
(Preparing for some teams that are – you get what you see from them. The Patriots are so able to adapt themselves every single week it seems for so long now. How much more of a challenge is that to prepare for a team that you might not know what you’re going to see on Sunday?) – “I think the biggest challenge right now is just the fact that it’s the first game of the season. We don’t really know – obviously they have a different quarterback. It’s just adjusting to that, really; and like I said earlier, what it comes down to is us. It’s how we come to the game, how we tackle, how we really execute on down to down basis. That’s what it really comes down to.”
(Obviously this has been a heavy offseason with COVID, with the social justice communication and everything, and now we’re getting towards Week 1. How has the heaviness of this offseason impacted you going into Week 1?) – “I just use it as motivation, really. It’s something that I carry with me throughout my training sessions. It’s on my mind. It really inspires me to do more for the community. I think a lot of people, especially successful people in the league, you can really look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself have you been doing enough. And a lot of times that answer is no. It’s really expanded my mind in terms of giving back and what’s most important in life. When you look back on your life, what are you going to be most proud of? That’s something that’s really changed me as a person. It’s something that I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life. It’s going to inspire some of the actions I do off the field, no question.”
(Two things for you – one on CB Xavien Howard and one on CB Noah Igbinoghene. With Noah, from what you’ve seen in practice, does he look like someone whose going to be able to help right away or is that impossible to tell? With Xavien, I know you obviously don’t watch a lot of defensive players; but was there anything you admired about Xavien watching him from a distance just on TV the last couple of years, about his skillset?) – “I’ll tell you with Noah, first he’s a really good player. One thing that’s really special about Noah is his maturity, the way he really approaches the game. He’s in the meetings early with coach, he’s in the meetings late. He’s taking notes, he’s very responsive to criticism. He responds well to good plays and bad plays. It’s really cool to see a young guy like that come into the league and be so prepared. Now obviously he has to go through the paces when he gets into the game; but I have confidence and we have confidence in his ability to make plays out there. With Xavien, truthfully, just seeing him on Day 1 and 2 of practice this year, seeing how he attacks the ball was special to me. I’m like ‘wow.’ Seeing his feet on the line of scrimmage and how he stays square, all this stuff I’m picking up from different players; but to see it in person is really different. That’s what’s the cool part about it is we’re all on the same team. We’re all picking and learning from each other, which ultimately makes us all better.”
(I wanted to ask you about the skillset that you’ve seen from WR Preston Williams and WR DeVante Parker. How are they different and how are they similar?) – “Obviously Preston and DeVante are really big receivers. Those guys have really good catch radius and they do a good job at going up and getting the ball. I think that’s the most important thing about a really good receiver. It may not be perfect, you may be guarded, but if you go up and attack that ball like they’ve shown throughout camp, I think they’ll be just fine. Isaiah (Ford) is a really crafty guy on the inside. He’s really savvy with his routes. He’s very patient as well. They are all good receivers, no question about that; but they all have different things that make them special.”
